Just One Name
by DM2008
Summary: This is an alternate universe story.The president asks Josh to be his chief of staff. What will happen next for Josh and Donna?
1. Chapter 1

Title: Just One Name (1?)

Author: Dana

Rating: PG-ish, I suppose

Disclaimer: Don't own them, but a girl can dream!

This fic is profoundly AU and commences shortly after the beginning of season six. The President asks Josh to be his Chief of Staff. What will happen next for our dynamic duo? Read and find out!

P.S. This is my first fic ever; please be gentle!

Feedback: Much appreciated and helpful. Thanks! was going to be all right. That was the most important news to everyone who worked and lived in the White House from the lowliest intern to the imaginary dog that the President had never actually gotten.

While all of the senior staffers felt eternally grateful that the life of their wonderful boss and dear friend had been spared, they simultaneously recognized another important fact: a new chief of staff had to be appointed immediately. It was the elephant in the room that no one wanted to mention for fear of being disrespectful. CJ, Toby, and Josh began a slow retreat out of the hospital waiting room after hours of uncertainty and a grueling day at the White House.

The President began to follow his people out of the waiting room but slightly hesitating, noticeably in deep thought. He drew in a deep breath, slowly put his hands into his suit pockets, smiled, and said in a quiet but composed voice,

"Josh." The Deputy Chief of Staff slowly turned back toward the President without saying anything. "I need you to jump off a cliff….."

To be continued if you like it….

Lots more Josh and Donna, and I will try to bring the funny despite its absence in this short chapter!

Let me know what you think!


	2. Chapter 2

Just One Name (2?)

Author: Dana

Disclaimer: Not mine.

Rating: PG

See Part One for premise explanation

Feedback is always enjoyed and appreciated.

Later the same evening...

As the sun slowly set on an emotionally draining day, the lights of the bullpen began to fade. Sitting at her desk, Donna shrugged off a feeling of breathlessness that followed her short but laborious journey from the television monitors back to her area.

The national news stations had been updating the world on Leo's condition. Although all of the staffers knew that he was going to be all right, they took a collective sigh of relief when they heard it announced on t.v. Donna had meant to ask someone to help her back to her desk, but the gathered group of people scattered quickly and for the second time that day, she found herself momentarily stranded in her wheelchair.

After her breathing was under control, she shook off a yawn that signaled her exhaustion. Even while sitting up, she felt her eyes begin to close. Images of soft pillows and warm, fluffy comforters danced through her head, but then she saw other images flash across her mind. Shesaw an image of a man sitting in a notably uncomfortable chair in a hospital room with his feet propped up on another chair.She sawan image of a man who had made politics his entire life but who had flown across the Atlantic with nothing else other than his backpack.She sawan image of Bartlet's pitbull looking at her with warm brown eyes saying, "I'm here as long as I need to be here." Those images of Josh being there to help her through a rough time were enough to make her forget the fatigue that washed over her and get back to work so that she could help him. Those images were also enough to make her lips curve upward in a small, shy smile.

Immediately, she phoned in for take-out for Josh and herself, because she knew it had been hours since he had eaten. In fact, she wondered about the last time that he had eaten anything that wasn't on the top triangle of the food pyramid. She grabbed a memo on education that he would want to read extensively before his lunch meeting with two Congressmen the following day and slowly but surely wheeled herself into his office.

She gasped audibly upon entering his office and thought that her reaction must be what mothers go through when they enter their teenager's bedroom. Styrofoam coffee cups littered the office. Papers were strewn all over the desk and chairs. Binders were lying open on the floor. Take-out containers were on his bookshelf. Joshua, Josh, Josh, she thought to herself. It took a while, but eventually, with the help of Troy, the kind custodian who offered his assistance, Josh's office was more habitable than it had been thirty minutes beforehand. Their take out dinner was sitting on his desk, and Donna was sitting in her wheelchair next to the visitor's chair. She grabbed the education memo and began reading it so that she could be ready to brief him.

There had been complete silence in the car that returned the senior staffers back to the West Wing. CJ, Toby, and Josh returned to the White House around 11:30 P.M. CJ was headed to the briefing room to read a statement from one of Leo's doctors. Toby was off to work on a new speech. Josh slowly treaded through the corridors, never feeling more exhausted in his life.

He spotted a female figure sitting in his office, which made him feel like a complete jerk. He knew that she should be home recuperating and resting, not waiting for her haggard boss to return to work. However, the mere sight of her was enough to relax him. She had that effect on him like no one else he had ever known. It occurred to him that he had been staring at her from the doorway but hadn't actually spoken. He walked into their office and took a seat in the visitor's chair next to Donna.

"Hi," he said softly. She looked up from the memo and gave him a small smile. She glanced at his face that appeared tired but also had a spark of something of an entirely different nature; something had changed in his demeanor since that afternoon.

"Hi, there," she replied equally as softly.

"You're still here," he stated. If the desk lamp hadn't been the only source of light illuminating their office, he would've seen Donna's eyes instantly widen and darken with intensity at his comment.

"Yeah," she said with a coy but genuine smile. "I'm still here." They both retreated in their minds to what had been one of the most memorable moments of their lives.

Donna snapped herself out of the beautiful memory and inquired about Leo's condition. Josh told her the new things that he had learned at the hospital, pausing only slightly to feel nauseated. They ate dinner in their office in silence, deciding against small talk. Josh noted his clean surroundings and wondered what he would ever do without a friend as kind as Donna.

For her part, Donna knew that there was something that Josh wasn't saying; she patiently ate her food in silence. Just as she took a swig of her bottled water, Josh said, out of thin air, "So, the President wants me to take Leo's job. I haven't said anything to anyone else yet about it..." Josh being offered chief of staff was not a shock; in Donna's (and most of D.C.'s) eyes, he was the logical, intelligent, and most brilliant choice for a chief of staff. Hearing that she was the first person that he shared the news with warmed her heart and took her by surprise.

Unfortunately, her reaction was less than graceful. Almost as soon as the water entered her mouth, it went spewing into the air. She stared at him incredulously and was about to speak but he spoke again, having completely ignored her water incident. "He gave me until tomorrow morning to decide. I don't know how I feel about this Donna; it feels like I'm stealing Leo's job out from under him. I know that everyone will talk about what a magnificent career boost this is for me and what a once-in-a-lifetime kind of thing but I...I just don't know." Josh paused and detected a playful look in Donna's eyes. "What?"

Donna batted her eyelashes and said in a singsong voice, "Oh, I was just thinking about what a very, very powerful man you will be if you accept the position." At that, Josh laughed out loud for the first time in weeks. He felt the weight that had been placed on his shoulders just a bit lighter with Donna sitting next to him, making him feel like himself again.

She softly reached for his left hand with her right one. Josh immediately stopped laughing and felt his heart rate begin to increase at the contact. Donna laced their fingers together and stared at their joined hands. She looked up at him, straight into his eyes, and said what she knew that he needed to hear.

"Despite my frequent need to keep your ego in check, I am going to tell you that no one deserves the title of Chief of Staff more than you do. You won't be stealing Leo's job away. You'll be helping the president function to the best of his ability. You'll bring even more passion and enthusiasm to being Chief of Staff than you've brought to any other job in politics that you've held in your life. I will not allow you for one second to question your ability to function effectively in this new role, Josh. I won't tell you that this position will make you a power player in politics and all of the other narcissistic comments that infiltrate the lives of regular politicians. We both know that service to the president far outweighs a desire for self advancement. I am going to ask you one thing, though. Is this job what you want?"

It took him a second to reply, because he was so overwhelmed by what she had just said. The power of conviction in her voice was so strong. Donna didn't hand out compliments freely and was by no means without criticism of his political decisions. If she believed in him this strongly, he knew he could do anything, and that included his dream job. In reply to her question, he nodded his head up and down several times and whispered, "Yes."

"Well then, do it, baby!"

To be continued...

I promise that the story will speed up. I just had to get some things established first!

Feedback is precious!


	3. Chapter 3

Just One Name (3?)

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: Not mine.

Notes: the inscription on the card is from Shakespeare's Macbeth.

The next few days went by in a whirlwind. Everything and everyone in D.C. was buzzing with a newfound sense of exuberance. C.J. was beaming as she began the press conference in which Josh was introduced as the incoming Chief of Staff. It had gone very well, despite Josh's nerves at facing the entire press corps in light of past missteps with the reporters. Nevertheless, the president's announcement earned Josh a standing ovation. One journalist from Reuters even asked in a snooty tone if she could be let in on what Josh's "secret plan to fight inflation" entailed. At that, he laughed nervously while a tiny bead of sweat trickled down his forehead.

Donna noticed a new skip in his step and was profoundly happy to see him get the recognition he deserved, especially in light of the hardships that he had endured just a year earlier. His giddiness was downright contagious, and she had never been more proud of anyone in her life.

She appointed herself in charge of watching over his mental state by instating certain rules. Unless absolutely unavoidable, Josh was not allowed to stay at the White House for longer than fourteen hours at a time. She kindly asked the workers in the Mess not to serve Josh anything with inappropriately high levels of sugar or caffeine. The last thing the country, and Donna specifically, needed was to have the new Chief of Staff all amped up and bouncing around the West Wing like Tigger. For the two of them to work as the well-oiled machine that they had been from day one, Josh had to be cool, calm, and collected. Well, as cool, calm, and collected as Josh Lyman could be.

Some people assumed that Josh would appoint Margaret as his senior assistant, seeing as how she had kept the Chief of Staff's office running effectively for many years. Assuming was not always a wise choice in politics. Unfortunately for Will, he also "assumed" that Donna would no longer be working for Josh and decided to pay her a visit and feel out the situation. He came to regret that decision exactly twenty minutes later when a decidedly rumpled Josh came stomping into his office and slammed the door so hard that Will thought it might fall off of the hinges. In fact, he really hoped that Josh didn't have any sharp objects with him, like a switchblade or something with the ability to inflict pain.

"I'll give you three guesses as to why I'm here, but I suspect you already know the reason," barked Josh through his scowling face. He took a look at Will, who appeared rather frightened. The two men began speaking at the same time.

"For the love of God, will you tell the Vice President to stop sitting in on meetings with the President and the Joint…"

"Look, Josh, if this is about the job that I offered Donna this morning…"

"I mean, he can't just barge into meetings without permission-.." Josh froze in the middle of his sentence as if he'd been hit with a stun gun. Then, very quietly, he whispered in a raspy tone, "You offered Donna a job?"

Will nodded. "She is extremely capable and brilliant and would make an excellent addition to the Vice President's staff." Josh had taken a seat and had become very pale very rapidly; he knew that many people had tried to hire her away over the years. It had never been a concern to him; they had always been loyal to each other no matter what. However, her unhappiness in her job just months before had created a considerable insecurity with which he wasn't entirely familiar.

"So that is reason enough to poach the most valuable person that I have ever worked with?" he screeched. Then, his voice got softer. "That's reason enough to try and steal my…"Josh paused. So many words could fill in that blank for him. He completed it with, "my best friend?"

"Josh, I wasn't trying to steal her. I heard through the grape vine that you were going to have Margaret be your senior assistant, so I offered Donna an opportunity for advancement. Fortunately for you, she likes working with you more than anyone. But you know, she won't work for you forever." Will's voice possessed a slightly accusatory tone. "And if she really is the most valuable person you've ever worked with, have you stopped to ask yourself why you have her organizing your schedule and taking your lunch order rather than assisting you with the more serious issues? Face it Josh, one day, you're going to have to let her go." At Will's final remark, Josh felt like he had been punched in the gut, smacked upside the head, and had his heart ripped out of his chest.

He didn't dignify Will's little diatribe with a response. Rather, he stood up and walked toward the door.

Before he left, he looked back at Will and spoke. "Tell the Vice President to take more geography lessons with Kate before trying to converse with the Joint Chiefs. Make him draw a map of the world and label it before you send him into a strategy session again." With that, he left.

Although Josh had begun working out of Leo's office on the day of the announcement in order to be close by to serve the president, Josh's things still needed to get packed up. He still spent time in the old office every day. Margaret had agreed to staff him for a few days while Donna packed up their things from their old office quarters.

Upon walking back from the OEOB, Josh realized how others may have assumed that Margaret was staying permanently. He wondered out loud why Donna hadn't mentioned the job offer to him; she usually did tell him when she received them. The fact that she hadn't mentioned it scared him slightly. While she might have been staying with him for the time being, he had an overwhelming sense of dread that perhaps she wasn't happy being around him anymore. That thought terrified him to his very soul.

When he reached Donna's soon-to-be former cubicle, he climbed over the boxes. His assistant was in the process of politely but forcefully delegating the packing to two junior staffers that Toby had loaned her to help out. The last thing that Josh and Donna needed was for someone to interrupt their, and by "their" system they meant Donna's system, of organization by throwing everything into boxes with no attention to detail.

Toby had been very sweet to Donna since she had returned from Germany. He wheeled her to the mess for lunch or helped her into a cab in the evening, which was no easy task in light of her still sensitive right leg. Offering her the staffers for a few days was yet another kind gesture. To the world, Toby might've been rough and grumbling, but Donna had the ability to bring out Toby Ziegler's inner teddy bear.

Josh had actually discovered that jumping over all of the boxes was like a fun, albeit slightly intricate game of hopscotch. Of course, it had been a tactical error to mention that fact to Donna; it earned him a rather imposing death glare. As he quickly leaned down over her shoulder toward the desk to pick up the file about the thing later, he couldn't help but notice how heavenly she smelled. Heavenly, he thought, like an angel. Just as quickly as his mind had floated away, she forcefully grabbed him by the collar of his suit jacket before he had a chance stand up straight.

Josh didn't miss a beat. He smirked and decided to bait her into what he had discovered was a brilliant stress reliever: banter. "You know Donna, if you keep being so demonstrative in the office, people are going to talk." That last part was the biggest understatement of the century; people had always "talked," and, in light of Josh's recent "travel" destination, people were talking more than ever.

She completely ignored his comment and realized that she would have to activate the code word system. The code word system was something that they had invented way back on the Bartlet for America campaign. It was meant to place Josh on high alert, to be acutely aware of his surroundings so as not to get looped into any conversations with political piranhas waiting around in the wings for him. Little did they both know that a code word system was unnecessary; no one had ever succeeded in following their fast paced conversational stylings: not even Toby.

She yanked his collar again and whispered, "Danger, Danger, Will Robinson." Josh immediately tensed. Donna released his collar and continued packing her files. He ran his hands over his face roughly and raked his hands through what was remaining of his hair. Whatever was on the other side of the door, it could not be anything good if Donna had used code language. He slowly opened the door, looked inside, and instantly wished he could've been sucked into the depths of the earth rather than take this next meeting…

Flowers were being sent by the truckload to the Chief of Staff's office to congratulate Josh on his promotion. To Donna's surprise, she was receiving flowers as well. Of the several dozen flowers that were sent to her from people like Congressman Skinner and various senior assistants and aides on the Hill, two of her floral arrangements were left unsigned. One of the cards hardly needed a signature. One arrangement contained long stemmed crimson red roses with baby's breath peeking out of the edges. Despite the fact that the arrangement had almost gotten lost in the midst of the other flowers, the card remained planted firmly in the arrangement and read: "For my dearest partner in greatness." The note, written in that oh so familiar handwriting, caused her to grin from ear to ear. She held the card against her heart and whispered into the air, "Thank you."

The other distinct bouquet of flowers contained wild orchids with a note written by someone with penmanship that was unidentifiable to Donna. The card was short:

"I'm not going anywhere…"

To be continued….

Feedback is fabulous!


	4. Chapter 4

FF: Just One Name (4?)

Disclaimer: Not mine.

Notes: See Chapter 1 for premise explanation.

The trivia is from peephole device is based on something that I read about another senior assistant having.

Feedback: inspires me to write more!

Previously…

He slowly opened the door, looked inside, and instantly wished he could've been sucked into the depths

of the earth rather than take this next meeting…

Two gentlemen in dark black suits were patiently standing in Josh's old office. They instinctively turned upon hearing the door open. "Hello, Josh," one of the men said in a friendly manner. "How's Leo doing?"

Josh let out a big puff of air that had been collecting in his mouth as if he was a flounder. He resisted the urge to gulp. Upon first seeing the man who had greeted him, Josh realized that he had completely forgotten about this particular aspect of being high up on the political food chain. These men were hardly the political piranhas that he was expecting; however, Donna was probably just trying to alert him to a unique situation. They had never had to make up code language for what he knew was about to happen.

"Hello, Ron," Josh shook his hand as he glanced at the man standing next to Ron. "Leo is still in recovery mode, but we hope to have him back here as a senior advisor to the president when he feels up to it. What can I do for you today?"

"Well, Josh, it's really more about what we'll be doing for you from now on. As you know, being chief of staff comes with several additions that other members of the administration are not accustomed to having. You'll probably feel a little crowded for awhile, but even Leo got used to it after some time. This is Alexander Webber." Josh's eyes shifted toward Alexander. The two men nodded and shook hands. "He is going to be your primary secret service detail from now on. There will be several other agents who will protect you when he is off duty, but Alexander will be with you most of the time."

The loss of his personal freedom made him cringe slightly, but as always, Josh served at the pleasure of the president. And if serving at the pleasure of the president required that he be watched twenty four hours a day, then that would be all right.

Josh had to look up to make eye contact with Alexander as he was rather tall. Josh was sure that he'd hear from Donna later if women considered this man handsome. Of course, he knew that Donna wouldn't personally find him handsome, because Josh was the only man that she found handsome. She had said so herself. Josh inwardly rolled his eyes at his own silliness and foolishness; evidence to the contrary had been present in her hospital room in the form of her own personal Heathcliff. So much for being her hero, he thought sadly.

After the introductions had been made, Josh was called into a private meeting with the president. He headed toward the Oval Office, with Alexander fast on his heels, on his regular route but was intercepted by Margaret, who grabbed him by the arm and led him in through the Chief of Staff's door. A young man that Josh didn't recognize came in and informed him that the president and the First Lady were finishing dinner with the French Ambassador and his wife but that he would arrive in any minute. After Josh declined anything to drink, the young man closed the door and returned to his work.

Josh sat down in the chair next to the president's desk and covered his face with his hands, blocking out the lights in the Oval Office that were still bright despite the late night hours that were rapidly approaching. Only when he was alone or in the presence of those that he trusted more than life did he allow himself to be so vulnerable.

He had only been chief of staff for a few days but began to realize the isolating tendencies that the job possessed. To be sure, he still saw a fair share of people, but due to his high profile position, people came to the White House to see him rather than him going to the Hill. He saw C.J. and Toby at Senior Staff in the mornings, but he had less time to brainstorm and discuss issues with them like he used to do. Mostly, they came to him when their ideas or input was close to being ready to send to the president for consideration. While Josh enjoyed the challenges of his new job and felt mature enough to handle the pressure, there was still a part of him that resisted all of the changes.

The president entered and interrupted his thoughts. Nothing if not polite and courteous, Josh stood upon his entrance. "Mr. Chief of Staff," the president addressed him with a twinkle in his eyes as both men sat down.

"Good evening, Mr. President. How was your dinner?"

"Oh, it was just splendid. The conversation was intellectual and stimulating." He paused and a playful look crossed his face. "Plus, I think that the Ambassador's wife might have a little crush on me. She kept telling me that I was "mignon" so either she thinks that I'm cute or a piece of meat."

The president's use of the French language made Josh remember the conversation that he had with Toby when Donna was on the CODEL and sending him such long e-mails. He remembered Toby using the French proverb, "Le mot juste." Of course, he had retorted that "Le mot mo'." He also remembered reading her "long" e-mails on the plane when they might have been all that he had left of her. While sitting in the Oval Office with the president, he made a mental note to let Donna talk about anything and everything for as long as she wanted, no matter how frightening the prospect.

Josh grinned. "Perhaps she finds you to be both, sir."

"Well, I suppose there's nothing wrong with being both. Anyway, Josh, the reason that I called you in…"

The young man who had addressed Josh earlier re-entered the Oval Office. "Excuse me Mr. President, Josh, you're both needed in the sit-room right away." Josh's head perked up; this would be his first visit to the sit-room.

"Thank you, Derek. Come on Josh," the president stood up and began to walk with an attentive and enthusiastic Josh at his side. Josh enjoyed being able to have longer conversations with the president. Normally, their conversations were restricted to meetings with other members of the administration or very brief private discussions. "We'll talk on the way. I want to discuss my full plan in further detail, but it begins with the Library that I'm having built and also we need to discuss names for possible…" Behind the two men who were in deep conversation on their way to the situation room, two of the president's Secret Service agents and Alexander followed behind them.

A few hours later

With Margaret having left hours ago, Donna had wheeled herself into Margaret's office area to organize some files for Josh. Most people had gone home. Toby brought her a salad, and C.J. invited her out for a drink, but she declined on account of having to finish unpacking boxes and read over a few things.

After forty minutes of staring at a document, she lifted her eyes over to the wall separating her desk from Josh's new digs. Her eyes danced across the wall and found what Margaret had alerted her to earlier: a peep hole. Donna laughed at the absurd notion, but nevertheless, moved herself over toward the hole. Shrugging to herself as if to say "why not?", she leaned her face against the wall, shut one eye, and pushed the other eye up through the hole as if she were looking through a kaleidoscope. Donna giggled to herself about what would happen if Josh ever saw an eyeball peeking through one of his walls. Fortunately for her, she didn't have to wait too long for an answer. She heard a screech that sounded like a girl and then a loud crash.

"Donna," she heard through the wall. However, this was more like a cry for help and less like a regular bellow. Come to think of it, she thought, he hadn't bellowed for her in a long time. It was rather unusual. The door opened and Alexander smiled at her genuinely.

"Good evening, Miss Moss."

"Please call me Donna." She gestured into the office. "Is he okay in there?"

"Oh, I think so. He just lost his balance or something. Let me help you in there." Alexander effortlessly wheeled Donna into Josh's office and over toward the chair by the couch where Josh was now sitting and turning his neck in several directions in an effort to alleviate the pain.

"I'll be out here," Alexander said, pointing to the area outside of Donna's new office quarters and shutting the door behind him.

She turned her attention to the big baby sitting next to her. "So Mr. Bambi-esque, what happened?"

"Well, Miss Moss, you'll have to forgive me. It's not everyday that I see a big, beautiful blue eye peering through one of my walls while I am calmly leaning against said wall in an effort to de-stress. In fact, seeing an eyeball sticking through my wall is an anti-destressor!"

"An anti-destressor?" Donna raised an eyebrow. "You know, I don't think we're allowed to make up our own words around here."

Josh looked at her. He noticed how her blue blouse brought out the color in her eyes. Directly below her eyes, he saw dark circles. "You're tired," he stated rather than asked. "Why haven't you gone home already? You don't have to wait around for me all of the time. Ginger and Carol don't stay late with their bosses, you know."

"I'll go home when you go home," she replied simply. She also noticed that he had continued to turn his neck back and forth during their short conversation. His shirt sleeves had managed to get rolled up to his elbows again and his tie was loose. In the beginning of each day since he'd become chief of staff, he had been dressed rather sharply, but he always ended up rumpled after the end of the day. She was glad to know that some things would never change. No matter what his job title, he'd always be her adorably rumpled Josh. She wouldn't want him any other way.

"Hey," she said in a quiet voice. He pulled his hands off of his neck and shoulders, strained after so many hours of work. When he turned toward her and looked at her pensively, she continued. "Scoot over closer." He moved his back from the back of the chair over toward the arm of it. She placed her hands on his shoulders and slowly began to massage the knots out. He glanced over his shoulder at her hands that were so elegant and delicate. In an effort to distract himself from the relaxing effect that she was having on him, he struck up a conversation.

"So," he began as she continued her ministrations, "Have you met Alexander yet?"

"Yeah." She batted her eyelashes. "He's really quite dreamy." Josh looked up with a raised eyebrow. "Well, not to me," she said emphatically. Josh grinned, showing his dimples for the first time in several days.

"Yeah," she continued. "I met him late this afternoon when he and Ron Butterfield stopped by our old office. Do you know the meaning of the name Alexander, Josh?"

"No, but I am sure you will inform me."

"That I will. In Greek, it means protector of mankind. I think that's a good, strong name for the man who's protecting my man." At this statement, Josh's eyebrows flew upward.

Yet, he continued to dip his head downward to allow Donna better access to his neck. She continued to gently rub his shoulders and he involuntarily moaned. This made her smile.

"Your man, huh?" Donna sensed a smirk despite not being able to see his face.

"That's right. My powerful, intelligent, handsome man who can barely walk ten feet without slipping, tripping, or just plain old falling smack down on the ground. I'm glad to know that you have someone to catch you when you fall now."

"I had someone like that already." Josh replied quietly. He said it so quietly that Donna almost didn't hear it. Almost. As she rubbed his neck, his muscles loosened up. He found it amazing that Donna's touch could make him feel safer than any armed secret serviceman ever could. Quickly, he felt the exhaustion set over him in waves.

"I don't know if my legs are going to be able to walk out of here tonight."

"Well, it might help if you were a dragonfly. They have six legs. You'd have a couple of additional

legs to help you out."

Josh laughed. "Yes, that would help."

Donna sighed dramatically. "Sadly, they cannot walk." Josh looked at her like she had gone a little nutty.

"Doesn't that make all of their legs a bit superfluous and counterproductive?"

"Perhaps." She looked over his face carefully and changed topics. "How are you?" she asked genuinely as they continued to study each other.

"I'm fine," he replied. She gave him a pointed look. "Really."

"You know, Josh, fine is a positive word covering up a negative emotion. Seriously, how are you?" she asked again.

He sighed. "I'm tired but happy." He glanced at her again. "How are you?"

Her answer mirrored his. "I'm tired but content." The word content unsettled him. He made a mental note to ask her about her wording on that at some point. They abandoned their conversation when Josh had to take a call from the Minority Leader of the House.

Thirty minutes later, they were eating pizza in their new office. As far as they knew, they were the only boss and assistant who regularly scheduled time to eat at least one meal together per day. Since Donna's return and their old closeness had been renewed, they ate at least two meals together per day, mostly discussing work.

Although he couldn't tell her much, Donna was pleased to hear that Josh's first experience in the situation room had gone well. He was on good terms with the Defense Secretary, and the generals had accepted him very quickly. This positive first experience had relaxed Josh because foreign relations had been his biggest worry upon taking the job. A few phone calls with Leo had settled his nerves, though.

"The president has a great new idea for education all across the country," he told her as he drank his Pepsi, which much to his chagrin, was caffeine free. Although no one else knew about it yet, he was excited to share it and knew that Donna would get as excited about it as he was and would never divulge the information to anyone. Both of their loyalties had always been to the president.

"Oh," Donna said between pizza bites. She had originally gotten the pizza just for Josh and Alexander, but Alexander had respectfully declined. He wasn't allowed to eat on the job and after weeks of nasty hospital food, a salad just didn't satisfy Donna's appetite. "I forgot to tell you a few days ago in the midst of all of the excitement, but I rescheduled your education lunch meeting. It's now an education dinner meeting but still with Congressmen Skinner and Santos. Maybe you can mention the president's new plan to them."

"Hmmm," he smiled at the pizza sauce on her face and gently wiped it off with a napkin.

"Not a bad idea, Donnatella." His hand rested on her face a little longer than necessary and then reluctantly pulled away. Donna began speaking to distract herself, as she was sure that she was the only one affected by their recent closeness. Neither noticed C.J. standing in the doorway.

"Hey Josh, did you know that you don't have to be a lawyer to be a Supreme Court Justice?" he looked at Donna like she had lost her mind, although in a slightly amused fashion.

"Why is this information relevant?"

"Well," she said with a thousand watt smile. "If you want to add it to your list of career goals, you don't have to let the fact that you're not a lawyer dissuade you from attaining it." Josh balled up several napkins and threw them playfully at her. He had never been happier in his life.

C.J. had been waiting for an opening to introduce herself into the room, but the two of them talked a mile a minute. She couldn't tear her eyes away from them. She couldn't help but see the bond that they shared. Silently, C.J. wished for a soul-mate.

She left the two workaholics, who were enjoying a rare moment of peace in each other's company, and headed for the briefing room.

"C.J.!"

"C.J.!"

"C.J.!"

"C.J.!"

The press corps had already sprung out of their seats even before she had entered the room. She found it quite disturbing that perhaps they could sense her arrival. Having already discussed the upcoming issue with many of the journalists, she took her first question from Mark, a seasoned reporter from The New York Times.

"C.J., you know what we all want to know. With Josh Lyman as the new Chief of Staff, who will

be filling the shoes as the Deputy Chief of Staff? Can you tell us who has made the short list?"

"Mark, I am so glad that you asked this question. Let me tell you that there is no short list." The cameras blasted furiously and the reporters stood with their pencils gripped tightly and with breath that was bated. "In fact, I have just one name…"

To be continued…

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	5. Chapter 5

Just One Name (5?)

Rating: PG for some language

Disclaimer: Not mine

Notes: See Part One for premise.

I took a bit of poetic license in healing Donna's injuries to move the story along.

Feedback: S'il vous plait!

Free time was almost nonexistent in the Bartlet administration. However, the little windows of it created moments of particular silliness. On the morning after C.J.'s announcement of the new DCOS, several of the senior staffers found themselves bored while waiting in the chief of staff's office.

"Who am I?" Toby asked as he placed an entire chocolate donut in his mouth. "The pwesident needs to be bwiefed." Kate looked genuinely confused, both at the joke and at Toby's attempt at something humorous. C.J. rolled her eyes and grabbed a piece of fruit.

A few minutes later, Josh entered the office with two coffees, several folders, and a backpack slung over his left arm. Donna followed behind him on crutches. Her physical therapy sessions had been going well enough that her doctor recommended upright walking. Toby didn't bother with greetings. "Where the hell have you been?"

Josh had a huge smile on his face. "It just so happens that Donna and I had someone very important to pick up at the airport."

"Look at all of you cool people hanging out in the boss's office."

"Sam!" C.J. screamed. She ran across the office and enveloped the man in a hug. She even managed to momentarily lift him off the ground. Everyone stood up to greet their old friend with handshakes and hugs.

"Okay people, okay. Let's not get so emotional," Josh scolded through his smile. "We've got work to do." He took a footstool that Donna had brought in from her apartment and gingerly propped up her bad leg. Donna gave him a small smile of appreciation while C.J., Toby, Kate, and Sam eyed them both curiously. Before anyone could say anything about his thoughtful behavior, he began the meeting.

"Without further ado," Josh began as he plopped twenty-some file folders into Sam's lap, "Let's welcome aboard our new Deputy Chief of Staff." This was followed by applause.

"All right, where do we stand on the energy conservation initiative?" Josh asked as he began to fix the two coffees next to him.

"We still need to bring Senator Pulley on board before we can move forward. After that, we should bring it to the President," supplied Toby.

"Sounds like a plan." Josh added two packets of artificial sweetener and a generous amount of milk to one of the coffees and then handed it, without so much as a sideways glance, to Donna who flawlessly replaced the coffee in his outstretched hand with the English muffin that she had buttered for him. This earned them more curious glances from the others in the room. The glances were not those of shock but merely ones of intrigue.

Josh continued. "Since our time left in office is limited, the president has decided to step up his education plan. He wants to encourage individual states to allocate more money for statewide scholarship programs for as many students as possible while simultaneously increasing nationwide grants for them. We've got a limited amount of time to make a difference; let's do some good."

Josh was headed out of his office and on his way to the Roosevelt Room for a meeting about a healthcare bill with some very cranky members of the opposing party when he heard Donna on the phone and stopped dead in his tracks.

"Yeah, I'm really looking forward to that, too. Oh, that's sounds great; I've never been there, but the food is supposed to be fabulous. Okay, great. I'll see you then. Bye."

She sighed heavily and stared at the phone for several seconds before looking up and seeing Josh staring at her. "Oh, Josh, you scared me." She hit him lightly on the arm. "You're going to be late for your meeting."

It took Josh a moment to recover from what he had overheard. Could her phone conversation have been the same person who had sent her the orchids with the cryptic card? He knew it was an invasion of her privacy to have read the card, but he hadn't been able to help himself. They had been on her desk sitting next to the roses that he had sent her; those roses were a replacement for the ones that he wasn't able to give her at the hospital in Germany. He had a pretty good idea who had sent the orchids, and it made him feel physically ill. Nevertheless, he shook off the feeling and spoke. "Walk with me," he said softly with a heartfelt smile.

The meaning of his words were not lost on Donna. This was their first chance to have a walk and talk since her return. Of course, they had technically walked from the entrance to Josh's office that morning, but that had been with Sam. Still, resuming their walks made Donna's heart skip a beat. She nodded and he handed her the crutches. Slowly but surely, they began a walk down the corridor.

He was the one to jumpstart their talk. "Did you know that the president has a new personal aide? Apparently Charlie left after he got his degree."

"Um, yeah, I heard something like that," Donna replied sheepishly, recalling her conversation with Charlie a few days earlier. He doesn't want me holding his jacket for the rest of my life.

"Don't forget your dinner tonight at eight with the Congressmen about the thing," she reminded him.

He registered what she said about dinner but continued to think about how Will had reprimanded him the other day about not giving Donna enough opportunities. He decided that he needed to change that.

"Do you want to come along to the meeting tonight?" He continued before she could make a retort about being a note-taker at the table as had been her duty over the last few years.

"You're familiar with all of the stats on the President's education initiatives and where his plan needs work. I think that your expertise on the issue could really help pull them in our direction." Donna's eyes grew wide and she was about to say yes until she remembered her pre-existing dinner plans.

"I wish that I could, but I'm having dinner with...a friend." She saw the look of disappointment on Josh's face. She wondered if the disappointment stemmed merely because she couldn't attend a business dinner. "Thank you for the opportunity, though," she replied genuinely.

"Sure," he said, not quite masking his disappointment. They stopped in front of the glass doors of the Roosevelt Room. She turned to head back to their office when he called her name. He looked into her eyes and said, "I find you very valuable." Her head perked up and they locked eyes for several seconds, each concerned that they were, individually, becoming more and more obvious by the second.

Donna had managed to leave work slightly early to prepare for her dinner "date." While applying her makeup, she considered the implication of the word date. She didn't really want to refer to it as a date, because it really wasn't. Her friend was just in town for a few days and wanted to see her. He had been very kind to her, and she thought it only right to accept his invitation. She knew that he hoped something might come of it, and her mind knew that she should feel something more than friendship for her dinner companion.

As her mind worked at a mile a minute, she applied mascara. It was her heart that was completely unaccepting of all men except for one. Despite that, she knew that she had to get some semblance of a life. She could be a woman who loved her career, but she absolutely had to go on social outings as well. These social outings needed to include people that she didn't see at work.

Her mind drifted to some of the serious relationships that she had been in over the years. In all of them, she had been happy at some point. She realized that many people could make each other happy in relationships, but considerable fewer people made each other happier than they had ever been in their lives.

It was easy for any couple to laugh together and have fun together. It took two people who were made for each other to support each other in the darkest hours of their lives and still be there when the sun came out again. She rolled her eyes at her inner girliness making an appearance. Yet, upon hearing the knock at the door she wished she hadn't agreed to dinner. Her heart just wasn't in it.

After Josh's final meeting for the day with the president, he was driven to his dinner meeting. Josh and the president had decided that the best way to promote the new education plan was to make stops in cities large and small across the U.S. and visit with universities in the area. C.J. planned on announcing the idea at the next morning briefing.

The new Chief of Staff tried to shake off the fact that he was about to share a meal in a dimly lit romantic restaurant with two members of Congress. The best he hoped for was that no violin players approached their table. The only people who scared him more than violin players were clowns. He did not like clowns. The hostess led Josh to a table near the center of the restaurant.

Congressman Santos was waiting for him. The two men shook hands and sat down. Congressman Skinner had called to say that he was running late. Josh took his tardiness as an opportunity to hound Santos about not running again.

"Sir, you really should reconsider running again. I hesitate to be rude. Well actually, I'm not going to hesitate to be rude. You're really screwing us by not running again."

Santos laughed. "I'm truly sorry about that, but my kids are growing up so fast." He pulled out his wallet and showed Josh their pictures. "I don't want to miss any more of my son's little league games or my daughter's dance recitals because I had to stay and vote on a bill. Plus, I don't know how much more time that I can spend away from my beautiful wife." He flipped to her picture. "Politics is a great career for me, but my family is my life. I'm sure working the twenty hour days that you do, you don't understand what I mean but-"

"No, no, I do, sir. Believe me when I say that I completely understand." He heard a voice reverberating in his mind. So you fly half way around the world on a moment's notice...to rush to a woman's bedside...when the White House is facing off a Biblical apocalypse.

At that moment, Matt Skinner arrived and greeted the two gentlemen with sincere apologies about his tardiness. They put in their orders and Josh began to fill them in on the new education plan in the hopes of launching a bipartisan effort.

While waiting on their food, Josh's eyes glanced around the restaurant. It really was a nice place, he noted. Toward the back, there were four rather secluded booths with intricate details drawn on the glass decorations hanging over the seats of the booth. Through one of the pieces of glass, he detected long blonde hair facing a man across from her. No, he thought. It's not her. You're just imagining things. Then, he saw a waiter emerge from the kitchen with what was the most grotesquely green looking salad that he had ever seen in his life. And it was taken to the blonde at the table. His suspicion that it was Donna was confirmed by the crutches with the purple rags attached to the top, leaning against the booth.

She can't be on a date, he thought sadly. Not after everything that we... His thoughts were interrupted.

"Josh," Congressman Skinner snapped a finger in front of his friend's face. "You still with us?" There was a hint of concern in his voice.

Josh snapped his head back to his table. "Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Where were we?"

He tried to listen intently to the conversation, but his eyes were drawn back to Donna and her dinner companion. He thought that he could get a better look if he leaned back slightly in his chair. However, every inch of vision that he gained by leaning back in his chair caused him to lean back even further until before he knew it, he sensed another crash approaching.

He felt contact between the top of his skull and the floor. Several women in the restaurant screamed in horror. Alexander and his other detail for the night ran toward the table from their posts near the front and back of the restaurant.

His dinner companions stood up quickly and inquired about how he was feeling as well. "I'm okay, just a little snafu. Really, this happens to me all of the time. I'm very clumsy." He slowly leaned up and winced at the headache that he felt approaching.

Without being able to help himself, he glanced one last time over at Donna's table. He saw her glancing over the side of her booth and caught her eye.

She tilted her head to the side as if to ask if he needed her. He shook his head as she gave him a concerned look and turned back to her dinner companion who was now in plain view. It was none other than Colin Ayres. Suddenly, all of the hope that he had been experiencing over the last few days was rapidly sucked out of him. By this time, their food had arrived and he turned back to his table, suddenly without any appetite.

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	6. Chapter 6

Just One Name (6?)

Disclaimer: Not mine, hence the Alternate Universe angle

Rating: PG

Feedback: I haven't really been getting a lot of feedback, but I hope you all are enjoying it. Feedback does inspire me to write more quickly.

Sam had been working late in his new, and Josh's old, office the night of Josh's ill-fated fall at the restaurant. Margaret was staying late to help him get things organized and to brief him on the most pressing matters. She had agreed to be his assistant for a few weeks, with the understanding that she would be going to work for Leo in the future, whether he returned to the White House as a senior advisor or went off to work somewhere else.

Almost everyone had gone home for the evening, and Sam was grateful that he had some peace and quiet. Around one o'clock in the morning, he decided to call it a day.

It was when he placed a memo on Donna's desk before exiting the building that he noticed a secret service agent at the door. Then, he noticed a light on in Josh's office. He entered the room to find his friend lying on the couch, fast asleep, with a cold compress on his head and a hand over his eyes. In light of all of the added responsibility and pressure, Josh had been handling his new job with ease and confidence. Therefore, Sam was surprised to see him looking so worn out. He wondered what the cause could be. He suspected it wasn't work related.

Several evenings later involved a semi-formal event at the White House: the unveiling of the plans for President Bartlet's library. After grabbing a glass of white wine and a red one, Josh headed toward Donna, who was leaning on her crutches and conversing with Margaret. He heard the tail end of her conversation. "He's just so persistent. It's embarrassing," Donna murmured while turning slightly red.

For his part, Josh felt himself turning green. Ever since seeing her out with Colin, he had felt his heart churning. But seeing as how he knew that he had no right to be inquisitive or jealous, he avoided mentioning it and decided to be happy for her. He knew that if he wanted to continue to be in her life, which he most certainly did, it was his job to be supportive of any choices she made regarding her personal and romantic life. Even if those choices didn't include him, Josh made a decision to be supportive.

Margaret told her, "Enjoy the attention; it doesn't have to turn into anything." Donna shrugged.

"Always talking shop, these two," Josh said to Sam while handing Donna the white wine. Donna took the wine and said sincerely, "Aren't you sweet?" He grinned.

"I think that he might just be the sweetest," Margaret deadpanned. Sam chuckled while looking at the two ladies' apparel.

"Well, my lovely lady friends, don't you both look stunning," Sam said gallantly. The women smiled brightly. "You two weren't wearing those outfits in the office today were you?" Sam asked seriously.

Donna and Margaret rolled their eyes. "Ladies and gentlemen, the men who help the President run this country," Donna announced with a hint of playfulness.

"If you'll excuse us for a few minutes, ladies…" Sam ushered Josh off and headed toward Toby. Once they reached him, Sam started talking. "I just got off the phone with the Transportation Secretary. He wants an extra ten billion in the budget for his department."

Toby look horrified. "An extra ten billion?" he grumbled.

Sam nodded. "For public transportation improvement in large urban cities and development of mass transit in some of the smaller urban cities."

"And what, pray tell, does the Secretary want us to cut so that his department gets more money?" Toby asked.

"He wants us to decrease the value of unemployment checks that are issued by 10," Sam replied.

Josh ran his hands over his face in frustration. The secretary had agreed to the proposed budget just a week ago. "All right, tell him to come to my office and we'll have a little chat. Maybe if we offer him half of what he wants he'll rest easier for a while." A few minutes later, Sam was talking to a Senator while Josh and Toby were camped out by the shrimp platter. Josh noted all of the green carpeting and Irish themes that were ubiquitous in the library model that had been set up.

Toby had just dipped a huge piece of shrimp into a yellow looking sauce and was about to take a bite when Josh said, "Do you know what the Irish call kissing? They call it snogging. I mean, they can term it whatever they want I suppose. It just makes no sense to me why they would liken kissing with something that sounds like it came out of someone's nose."

Toby looked at his shrimp and immediately placed it in a napkin. "How exactly do you get women, Josh?"

Josh smirked and said, "Boyish good looks, intelligence, and charm."

"I'll bet."

A few weeks later found the Bartlet team on a whirlwind tour around the U.S. to launch the president's new education ideas. Sam stayed at the White House as acting Chief of Staff while the others formed the President's entourage. Not for the first time, Toby had to be dragged away from several events because of making the President nervous while watching him read the speeches.

While in California, the senior staffers had to be on Air Force One by five a.m. for a flight from L.A. to Sacramento. Josh, Donna, C.J., and Toby rode the elevator down to the main lobby of their hotel. When it opened, they all walked quickly toward the motorcade, but Josh and Donna's stride was the fastest. While walking, they effortlessly juggled files, luggage, coffee, and even managed to have two separate cell phone conversations while arguing about vitamins.

C.J. and Toby heard their little debate while walking at a slower pace behind the dynamic duo.

"No. I'm not taking them."

"Josh, take them. You need something in your system besides coffee and hamburgers."

"I'm not a little boy, Donna. I don't need them."

Even from behind, C.J. and Toby could see the formation of Donna's pout as she turned to the side. "It would mean a lot to me if you took the vitamins."

Josh raised his eyebrows and viciously stuck his hand out to retrieve them.

C.J. and Toby shook their heads at each other.

C.J. made a special note to thank the pilot for, not only flying over but pointing out the San Andreas fault line on the flight, which became a full fledged presidential geology lesson on plate tectonics and earthquakes. After that, the lesson became a quiz.

Josh got a perfect score on the quiz and even though she had lived in California for many years, C.J. got a B. Despite being a grown man with a high profile job, he took delight in gloating about his high score.

"Hey, listen don't feel bad C.J. It's okay that you don't know these things," he chided. "Besides, the only reason I know is because my tour guide (he pointed to Donna who was sitting across from him, intently studying a report) likes to explain things, and well, I let her."

When the motorcade finally reached the hotel around eleven P.M. after a day of meeting with several California college presidents in the Sacramento area, they checked into their rooms at the downtown Hyatt Regency.

After several grueling hours on her feet during one of her first days entirely without crutches, Donna was ready to call it a night. Toby wanted to call Huck and Molly. The first lady had gotten to the presidential suite a few hours before the motorcade's arrival, and thus, the president was off to a bar-b-que.

C.J. and Josh decided to grab a drink and some food at the hotel bar. They ate fried mozzarella sticks and sat on barstools discussing school vouchers and laughing about the time that Leo gave Mallory Sam's opposition preparation paper to get her all riled up at Sam.

C.J. nearly choked on her beer when Josh asked, out of the blue, "Did you know that Will offered Donna a job?"

"Donna..."she paused. "Donna Moss?"

"Yeah, did you know?" he persisted.

"No, but I'm not surprised. She's incredibly capable, you know." C.J. gave him a pointed look.

"Of course I know that." He attempted a little bit of humor. "I'm not an idiot. It's not like I got to be Chief of Staff to the President of the United States on account of my dashing good looks." C.J. snorted.

He sighed and became a bit more serious. "Why does everyone assume that I don't know that?"

"Perhaps because you have kept her in grunt level servitude for too long." he raised his eyebrows at that comment.

"Oh yes," he added sarcastically. "Being given a career as a senior assistant in the White House is such enslavement. I don't know who on earth would want a job like that."

C.J. shook her head while chomping on another cheese stick that she had dipped in marinara sauce. "You know, it's a wonder that more women don't throw drinks in your face."

She continued but slightly softened her tone, aware that she was about to tread into slightly unmarked territory. "You also sold her a bill of goods when you sent her on the CODEL. She was on press detail. You sent her halfway around the world to do half of what she did for you in the office." At that remark, he sunk his head in defeat.

"You're right," he said simply and sadly.

"Oh, I'm going to need that in writing to show the others in the morning."

He ignored her. "I just...I need Donna...to do the work that I do at the White House.

C.J. laughed at how similar this conversation was to one that she had just several months prior with his other half. In her deja-vu moment, and in other recent moments, she realized her own mistake in interfering in the matter. She underestimated both Josh's and Donna's devotion to the other.

"It's not the White House." He looked at C.J. as if she had grown three heads and raised an eyebrow as if asking what else it could possibly be.

"It's her," she finished. Josh visibly gulped.

Donna stumbled into her room and headed straight toward the bed. She landed flat on her back and stayed very still for a few minutes and silently cursed her leg for giving her so much pain. A few minutes later, she hopped into the bathroom to get ready for bed.

Once on the bed again and clothed in her pajamas, she pulled her hair into a high, messy ponytail. She then signed onto her White House issued laptop to begin working on some opposition prep work that Josh had asked her to do. She paused for a moment and remembered putting her hand on his forehead to see if he was feeling okay when he had requested it. While appreciating the opportunity, it wasn't typically like him to offer her work that distracted her from picking up his lunch and scheduling his appointments. She wondered what had accounted for his recent vocal praise of her work.

Whatever the reason, she was grateful for the challenge. Although she hadn't told him as had been her habit in the past, Donna had turned down over fifteen job offers since Josh's promotion. One of the more notable offers came from Angela Blake, who apparently had been impressed enough with Donna to remember her a year later. While the most appealing offer had come from Will (an opportunity to be his deputy during the Vice President's campaign), Donna had never truly considered accepting any of them.

She had known that, although fully capable and prepared, Josh would need stability in his transformation from a deputy to a Chief of Staff. Just as she had suspected, their solid foundation as a team had created a flawless transition.

Josh had stayed by her hospital bed when she was at her most vulnerable. He stayed even when she knew that Leo needed him in Washington. He wanted to stay even after she kicked him out when her mom was driving her insane. She had no intention of leaving her best friend at one of the most critical points in his life.

After about thirty minutes of typing, she closed the laptop and drifted off to sleep. Her sleep would soon be interrupted.


End file.
